A Lakewood police officer was killed and three fellow officers were wounded on Thursday evening when a man opened fire on them as they approached him at a city bus, police said. A bystander was also injured. The man, who police say had fled a hit and run crash hours earlier, was shot by officers and died at the scene.
On Friday, police identified the fallen officer as Nic Graham, 33. He had served with the department since 2019. Lakewood, a city of about 157,000 people just west of Denver, calls its officers agents, a title the department borrowed from the FBI it was modeled on. The three wounded officers were taken to hospitals with injuries that ranged from serious to critical. Two have since been released. One remained in the hospital on Friday.
The officer who died
Chief Philip Smith said Graham started on patrol and became a field training agent in 2023, coaching newer officers. He later moved into investigations, where he handled 322 major crime cases, the largest caseload on the team, including homicide, domestic violence and stalking cases. In 2023, he received a department award for gang intelligence work and investigative support.
Graham came from a police family. His father recently retired from police work, and his mother worked in a crime laboratory, Smith said. “His accomplishments tell us what he did,” Smith said. “The gratitude of those he helped tells us how much his service mattered.”
“Words cannot express the profound sorrow our department is feeling right now, as well as our community, over the loss of our fallen hero, who made the ultimate sacrifice in service to the city of Lakewood,” department spokesperson John Romero said.
What happened at the bus
The evening began with a crash. Just before 3:45 p.m. on Thursday, officers were called to a hit and run near Kipling Street and West 13th Avenue. Witnesses described the driver, who had run from the scene, police said.
About three hours later, around 6:29 p.m., an officer spotted a man who matched that description boarding a bus at West Colfax Avenue and Wadsworth Boulevard, a busy corner about five miles west of downtown Denver. The officer called for backup. When officers approached the man and boarded the bus, he opened fire. The call reporting shots fired came in at about 6:32 p.m.
“Within seconds of agents approaching the suspect, the suspect opened fire on our agents. A gunfight ensued,” Romero said at a news conference on Thursday night. Officers returned fire, and the man was pronounced dead at the scene. Lakewood police had not released his name as of Friday, saying his family first had to be told.
The bus was operated for the Regional Transportation District on Route 76. RTD said it was “deeply concerned” by the shooting and was fully cooperating with investigators.
The wounded and the bystander
All four wounded officers were taken to area hospitals. By Friday morning, everyone admitted to Denver Health Medical Center from the scene had been discharged, a hospital spokesperson said. One injured person remained at CommonSpirit St. Anthony Hospital in Lakewood with injuries that were not life threatening. Police said one of the three wounded officers was still in a hospital on Friday but did not release his condition.
A bystander was also hurt in the gunfire. Police have not said how badly, and they have not named any of the wounded officers or the bystander.
A city in mourning
After the shooting, dozens of officers from across the Denver area gathered outside a hospital. A bagpiper played “Amazing Grace,” and a procession of police vehicles escorted their colleague to the coroner’s office. Residents placed flowers on the hood of a police vehicle outside the Lakewood Police Department. Neighboring agencies are helping to cover patrols and calls while the department grieves.
“Law enforcement put their lives on the line for our safety every day,” Colorado Gov. Jared Polis said in a statement. “Thank you to law enforcement who run into danger to keep us safe and to protect our communities.”
The First Judicial District Critical Incident Response Team is investigating the shooting, which is standard practice when officers use deadly force in the county. The city has posted information for residents who want to support the officers and their families at lakewoodco.gov. Read more of our coverage in the News section.